- October 15, 2024
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The developers of Tattersall at Tymber Creek are giving it another try.
Now proposing less lots for the 84-acre property at the northwest corner of Tymber Creek Road and Airport Road, local homebuilding company Paytas Homes' request for a development order was recommended for approval by way of a 4-1 vote at the Ormond Beach Planning Board meeting on Thursday, Sept. 8. Board member Angeline Shull voted against.
When it comes before the Ormond Beach City Commission, tentatively scheduled for Oct. 18, this will be the fifth time the commissioners consider a proposal for the land.
Three prior proposals, including the previous one by Paytas Homes in January, have been denied.
"When we came into this project, we came in with the sole purpose of trying to meet everything we thought that was objected to in prior applications," said Jim Paytas, of Paytas Homes, at the Planning Board meeting. "... And we thought we overcame them, within these boundaries that we were at, and I think you can recall where we ended up, which was my first time — never been through that before."
In 2006, a 68-lot subdivision proposal — for a smaller portion of the property, as the developer didn't own the northern half of the parcel — was approved by the commission for the property, but it was never built. In 2013, the developer asked to increase the number of lots to 163, a request that was denied by the commission. The development order then expired in 2014.
In 2018, the City Commission denied the 144-lot Marshside Village proposal, and while the developer of that project fled a petition to repeal the commission's denial, it was ultimately upheld by a Volusia County Circuit Judge in June 2020.
Paytas Homes' first development proposal asked for 143 lots. The developer's new proposal reduces the lot number to 129. The property is already zoned for a Planned Residential Development.
Additionally, Planning Director Steven Spraker said that the current application seeks to address citizens' stormwater flooding concerns with a 50-foot swale from Leeway Trail that would connect to Groover Branch, a wetland within the site. The developer is also increased the natural preservation area to 32.47 acres, or 38.5% of the project land area. This is an increase of 4.4% from the last proposal.
Citizens' main concerns revolved around traffic, loss of natural areas and flooding, which has been an issue in that area.
"I would like the city to be a little bit more thoughtful before giving approvals randomly," resident Debra Weinberg said. "There are things that were in place before you were all sitting here, so maybe you can remember that we the residents don't want all of this overbuilding because it does impact traffic. Traffic is going to be a nightmare. It's a nightmare right now."
Shull, who voted against the project, said she was torn while the board discussed the proposal.
"I know they're working really hard to do everything they can to get this done," she said. "I would like to see less homes, even now, I would like to see less homes."
Board member Lori Tolland said she didn't disagree with the members of the public who expressed their concerns.
"I think in my perfect world, I wouldn't want any development for a while, but that's not reality," Tolland said. "I think the developer has been very responsive to the citizens' concerns, and there's a lot of concerns."
Traffic is an issue that is worsening, said board member Mike Scudiero. As a resident of a nearby community to the proposed development, he said he likely has "more to lose" than any of the other board members. Like the majority of the board, he voted against the project last time.
"At the end of the day, it's not our job to prevent all development," he said. "It's our job to try to help make it better, and I know there's people in the room that don't want to hear that. The reality is this is the last project that can probably go in this part of town, and we're getting close to build-out altogether in Ormond Beach. There's people that just want to see this property stay dormant forever, and I don't think that's a reality."
